In brief

• Moldova's reintegration bureau says it will impose a five-year travel ban on Transnistria's leader Vadim Krasnoselsky after he returns from Moscow.
• Putin awarded Krasnoselsky the Order of Honour on 4 November, and Chisinau says it was not informed in advance.
• Moldova calls the trip a Russian provocation linked to OSCE-mediated gas talks for the winter.

Moldova's response

Moldova's reintegration bureau said it would apply restrictive measures against Krasnoselsky after he returns from Moscow, including a ban on leaving the country for five years (Молдова планує заборонити "лідеру" Придністров'я виїзд із країни на п’ять років – Європейська правда). Prime Minister Vasile Tofan described the decision as an asymmetric political response. Chisinau would not let Moscow use the trip to cast Moldova as the obstacle, he said (У Молдові вважають, що "лідер Придністров'я" не повернеться додому з Москви – Українська правда).

The Moscow award

On 4 November, Putin presented Krasnoselsky with the Order of Honour at a ceremony in the Kremlin tied to Russia's Day of National Unity. Putin said the award recognised his efforts to strengthen ties with Russia and develop the region under external pressure. Chisinau said it had not been informed in advance of the award (Молдавия введет санкции против президента Приднестровья за визит в Россию – gazeta.press).

Context of the visit

The bureau linked the timing of the trip to talks, mediated by the OSCE, on natural gas supplies to Transnistria for the winter. It called the visit a Russian provocation aimed at disrupting Moldova's European integration, while saying it would avoid escalation. Russia's OSCE envoy Dmitry Polyansky had earlier warned that Chisinau's actions could lead to a new military clash in the unrecognised region (Молдавия введет санкции из-за российской награды – rambler.ru).

What is not confirmed

Transnistria-related reports from Russian state media, including rambler.ru and mail.ru, add details about protests in Tiraspol over Moldovan customs duties, VAT and excise taxes. No Moldovan or independent source among these materials confirms those claims (Молдавия введет санкции против главы Приднестровья за визит в Москву – mail.ru).